Stuffer crimping apparatus



United States Patent Ofifice 3,234,625 Patented Feb. 15, 1966 3,234,625 I STUFFER CRIMPING APPARATUS Alexander L. Trifunovic and Andrew A. Benedek, Wilmington, Del., assignors to Joseph Bancroft 8: Sons Co., Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware Qriginal application Dec. 8, 1959, Ser. No. 858,141, now

Patent No. 3,110,076, dated Nov. 12, 1963. Divided and this application Sept. 19, 1963, Ser. No. 310,057

1 Claim. (Cl. 28-4) This application is a division of application Serial No. 858,141 filed on December 8, 1959, now U.S. Patent No. 3,110,076 for Stuffer Crimping Apparatus.

This invention relates to apparatus for crimping fibers, filaments, tow or yarn and more particularly to apparatus of the stuffer crimper type wherein the material to be crimped is fed into a closed chamber against the pressure of a mass of crimped material held compacted therein.

An object is to provide a novel and improved apparatus of the above type.

Another object is to provide in a stufier crimper, new and improved means for controlling the pressure on the packed mass of material.

Another object is to provide means for subjecting the packed mass in the chamber to different controlled pressures in various parts of the chamber.

Another object is to improve the crimp uniformity in the treated material.

Another object is to provide a stutter crimper in which the pressure in the crimping area can be controlled independently of the length of the chamber or of the pressure in the setting area.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent as the nature of the invention is more fully disclosed.

In accordance with this invention the fibers in the form of filaments or tow in continuous or staple form, or yarn spun from such fibers or composed to twisted or untwisted bundles of continuous filaments or tow, hereinafter referred to generally as fibers, are crimped by being fed between feed rolls into a confined crimping chamber against the pressure of a mass of fibers held compacted therein whereby the fibers are folded over into a zig-zag crimp as they enter the chamber from the bite of the feed rolls, as described more in detail in Shattuck Patent No. 2,760,252.

The fibers are compacted in a confined crimping zone at the bite of the feed rolls by a control member in the form of one or a pair of threaded pins extending into the crimping chamber to provide a predetermined constriction adjacent the bite of the feed rolls.

In a further embodiment the fibers may be confined by one or more pressure shoes disposed to enter the setting chamber at a point between the feed rolls and the discharge zone. The pressure shoes maintain the fibers between the shoes and the feed rolls under predetermined pressure while relieving the pressure on the fibers between the pressure shoes and the discharge zone there-by reducing the tension which it would otherwise be necessary to apply to the fibers to extract them from the packed mass.

The details of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which certain specific examples have been set forth for purposes of illustration.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section of a crimping apparatus embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial vertical section taken on the line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial vertical section similar to FIG. 1 illustrating a further embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a transverse section taken on the line 44 of FIG. 3.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 1 and 2 the crimper is shown as comprising a base '1 carrying a block 2 having a bore in which a sleeve 3 is seated. A tube 4 forming the crimping chamber is mounted in the sleeve 3 and is clamped thereto by a nut 6 on the split lower end 7'of the sleeve 3. A pair of feed rolls 10 and 11 are mounted on shafts 12 and 13, respectively, which are journalled in brackets 14 and 15 carried by the base 1. The bracket 15 is shown as mounted for pivotal movement and is spring-loaded by a spring 16 to hold the feed rolls 10 and 11 in gripping contact with a tow or yarn 20 to be fed thereby into the end of the tube 4. The lower end of the tube 4 is saddle-shaped to receive the rolls 10 and 11 and to form, with the bite of said rolls, a confined crimping chamber.

The shafts 12 and 13 are connected by intermeshing gears 21 and 22, and the shaft 12 is driven by a driving pulley 23 from a source of power not shown.

A pair of threaded pins 30, 31 are adjustably mounted on the device and extend at an upward inclination into the tube 4 at a point above and closely adjacent the bite of the feed rolls 1t 11 and in a plane parallel to the axes of the feed rolls. The ends 32, 33 of the pins 30, 31 are rounded to avoid sharp edges or projections which would interfere with the smooth feeding of the crimped fibers along the tube 4.

The pins 30, 31 form a constriction to compress the fibers in the crimping zone and maintain a controlled pressure on the fibers as they are crimped.

A plug 35 rests upon the mass of filaments in the discharge end of the tube 4 and is of a weight selected to maintain the mass between the pins 3t), 31 and the plug 35, under a suitable pressure for setting the crimp. The crimped material is withdrawn through a hole 36 in the plug 35 by a pair of delivery rolls 37 which may be driven at a predetermined ratio to the drive of the feed rolls 10 and 11.

The portion of the tube 4 within the block 2 may be heated by heating rods 39 or the like and the fibers may be guided to the feed rolls 10 and 11 by a guide 40 and tensioning gate 41.

In the operation of this embodiment the fibers in the crimping chamber or zone are maintained under a selected crimping pressure by the pins and 31 which constrict the passage of the fibers and thereby control the back pressure on the mass of fibers within the crimping zone between the pins 30 and 31 and the feed rolls 10 and 11. The fibers after passing the pins 30 and 31 are fed through the setting zone in the tube 4 where they are maintained under a pressure which is determined by the weight of the plug 35. This pressure may be maintained somewhat less than the pressure within the crimping zone so as to reduce the strain on the fibers while they are being set and also to reduce the density somewhat so as to facilitate the uniform heating of the fibers.

The crimped and set fibers are removed under tension through the hole 36 in the plug by the delivery rolls 37 and may be wound onto a package in the usual manner.

Although two pins have been shown a single pin may be used or a multiplicity of pins, depending upon the size of the crimping chamber. For crimping small denier fibers a single pin usually suffices.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 3 and 4 the crimping apparatus is similar to that above described and corresponding parts have been given the same reference characters with the suifix a, with the exception that the pins 30 and 31 are omitted and the passage is constricted by a pair of shoes 45 and 46 which are pivotally mounted on brackets 47 and 48 on the top of the block 2a and project inwardly through slots 49 and 50 in the crimping tube 4a. The shoes 45 and 46 are provided with smooth curvedinner surfaces 51 and 52 so as to constrict the pressure during their passage from the bite of the feed rolls 10, 11 through the heating zone and through a portion of the cooling zone between the top of the block 2 and the position of the shoes 45 and 46. The fibers are substantially unrestricted after passing the shoes 45 and 46 and the plug 35a may be made only heavy enough to prevent the fibers from matting as they are pulled out by the delivery rolls.

In this embodiment suflicient space is provided between the top of the shoes 45 and 46 and the plug 35a to effect the necessary cooling of the fibers to setting temperature before discharge.

By reducing the pressure on the mass of fibers during the final cooling stages in this way, it is possible to materially reduce the tension which must be applied to the fibers by the delivery rolls for extracting them from the mass of fibers in the cooling zone. 7

A pair of shoes 45 and 46 have been shown. In some instances, however, a single shoe may be used or a plurality of shoes spaced around the periphery of the tube 4a, depending upon the size of the tube and the denier of the material to be crimped.

The operation of the form in FIGS. 3 and 4 is otherwise the same as that described above in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2.

It may be desirable to exert the highest pressure on the fibers in the crimping zone, then subject the fibers to progressively lower pressures in the heating and cooling zones. This or other combinations can readily be effected by suitable adjustment of pins 30 and 31, shoes and 46, and plugs 35 and 35a.

What is claimed is:

A stufi'er crirnper comprising a heating block, a tube disposed therein and projecting above said block to form an elongated chamber constituting a heating zone within said block and a cooling zone above the block, feed rolls disposed to feed fibers into one end of said tube to be folded over and crimped due to the pressure of a mass of previously crimped fibers in said tube, said feed rolls being adapted to exert pressure for advancing the mass of crimped fibers along said tube to a discharge point at the other end of said tube, a shoe pivotally mounted on said block and extending into said tube above said block to form a constricting means, means adjusting and fixing the position of said shoe in said tube for controlling the back pressure of the fibers between said shoe and said feed rolls, a plug disposed in said other end of said tube to bear against the fibers and to control the pressure on the fibers between said shoe and said plug, and means withdrawing the crimped fibers under tension from said other end of said tube.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,311,174 2/1943 Hitt 1966 2,734,228 2/1956 Hay 1966 2,793,418 5/1957 Pfau 281 2,865,080 12/1958 Hentschel 1966 X 2,917,784 12/1959 Spenceetal. 1966 3,096,558 7/1963 Rainard et al 28--1 DONALD W. PARKER, Primary Examiner.

MERVIN STEIN, Examiner. 

